There are many different types of experiential learning programs that today’s young adults can participate in to gain meaningful, hands-on, real-world workforce training and exposure – that’s a good thing! However, with so many programs available it can be confusing to decide what type of opportunity is best suited to an individual or employer. In this session, attendees will gain a clear understanding of the similarities and differences between 5 of the most common types of youth experiential learning programs: internships, apprenticeships/pre-apprenticeships, externships, fellowships, and ELOs. Panelists will share the benefits of these programs for both young adult participants and employers, as well as best practices for building successful programs. The audience will walk away with concrete steps for how to promote these opportunities directly to youth.
Join us for an engaging presentation that explores Project>Login's innovative Girls Who Code Regional Partner model. Discover how this business-led approach transforms the landscape of computer science education for girls. We will delve into our successful summer camp experience, sharing best practices, including the use of Micro:bits to kickstart projects, collaborations that provide unique insights into local businesses, and our community-focused approach that welcomes students from multiple school districts. Learn how to implement these strategies in your community and empower young girls to become tech leaders.
This session will share the story of how the Gorham Schools have worked with partners at MDOE, MDOL, SMCC and USM to create an Educator Apprentice Program that allows individuals to move from HS diploma to full teacher certification over the course of 4 years without tuition costs, while being employed full time with benefits, and in a manner that allows apprentices to balance home and work life! Sound too good to be true? It IS NOT! Participants will learn how the program works, its benefits to employers and apprentices and how the program may be scalable in your local region.
In this session, participants will discuss the unique needs of the 5-8th grade middle level classroom in Maine, as well as how we can further develop programming specific to this special population in teacher preparation. We'll share our vision of best practices in middle level education as well as various pathways Thomas College has created to certify preservice teachers in the important and unique 5-8 grade spans in an interdisciplinary way. Ultimately, we want to address the ways in which we can strengthen the current teacher certification process while attending to the preparation needed to work on interdisciplinary, collaborative, inquiry-driven middle level teams.
Justice-impacted individuals make up about 1/3 of our population yet they are being overlooked and often barred from obtaining one of the 10 million unfilled jobs. In this session you will learn:
In this session, learn how St. George MSU is partnering with MidCoast School of Technology to develop a PreK-12 Career & Technical Education (CTE) program and construct a CTE/Makerspace Building that will be open to the community through adult education courses and "Open Shop" times. Attendees will learn how this new and exciting project will provide the opportunity to meet student needs and understand how CTE can affect students earlier in their education. Furthermore, attendees will understand best practices for developing crucial partnerships with local businesses, as we have done to gain sponsors. Powerful partnerships are helping us expand access to CTE to ALL students, PreK-12, and in the process, transform public education, fuel workforce development, and strengthen our local communities.
This session will provide sending school districts with a blueprint for how CTE students can earn core credit through their CTE program(s). Attendees will discover core subject content(s) that are currently embedded in CTE curriculums, learn how to award core credit equitably, be introduced to new assessment tools, and learn about pathways that have already been created to integrate subjects. This presentation is aligned with LD 436.
*Schedule and sessions subject to change
